Turkey litter for hay field

[Silver]

We deep plowed once what had been an old cow corral or feed pen at one time, we were planting wheat on that field and ended up putting that section up for hay for several years because it would burn up or was susceptible to fungus or something because it was so thick

I can believe that for sure. I'm just saying 20 tons per acre isn't very much. I think about .17" if my math is correct. I would have actually thought it to be a little thinner actually.

 

[Mrcopier]

4 tons to the acre seems a little thick. Do you soil test? Please show pictures of the unwanted plants (weeds by definition) that you have and someone here can help identify them, which will help in eliminating them.

No I don't soil test where I put it, it is land that has been abandoned for 20 plus years and I am turning it into a hay meadow. 4 tons is what the entire neighborhood does And have been for 20 years. We use it on hayfields mostly. Makes the grass do back flips

 

[mwj]

When you figure the square feet per acre a ton of material is not much.

 

[Mark Reynolds]

When you figure the square feet per acre a ton of material is not much.

It isn't much. But at the same time, it doesn't take much to end up being excessive and ending up with a situation where you are losing what you applied to runoff, wind erosion, breakdown of applied material from being exposed on the surface for an extended period of time or even volitation....or getting too much on top of the existing plants and having a negative impact on their growth. 0.17" doesn't seem like much. But also consider this, erosion that exceeds the thickness of a piece of paper is considered excessive.

 

[Travlr]

It isn't much. But at the same time, it doesn't take much to end up being excessive and ending up with a situation where you are losing what you applied to runoff, wind erosion, breakdown of applied material...

Sounds a lot like trace minerals in loose salt.

 

[Ebenezer]

Is the litter from a brooder house or a growout house? A lot of difference. The brooder litter will be very little in NPK.

 

[Mrcopier]

Is the litter from a brooder house or a growout house? A lot of difference. The brooder litter will be very little in NPK.

Not sure you were asking but ours is growout

 

[Dave]

People I got chicken manure from in western Washington said anything less than 4 ton per acre would end up with a tiger striped field. It was dry layer manure from high rise houses. Certainly made the grass grow. They had 900,000 layers and were the pied piper of chicken manure in the area for years. Then the organic farmers in eastern Washington started contracting for all their manure. Trucked it 200-300 miles. And very little available to local people.

 

[Mark Reynolds]

People I got chicken manure from in western Washington said anything less than 4 ton per acre would end up with a tiger striped field. It was dry layer manure from high rise houses. Certainly made the grass grow. They had 900,000 layers and were the pied piper of chicken manure in the area for years. Then the organic farmers in eastern Washington started contracting for all their manure. Trucked it 200-300 miles. And very little available to local people.

Well, that shows how valuable some folks think poultry manure is. As for the tiger striped field, how was it being applied? Injection maybe. But with a spreader? The stripes indicate equipment failure to me.

 

[Ebenezer]

People I got chicken manure from in western Washington said anything less than 4 ton per acre would end up with a tiger striped field. It was dry layer manure from high rise houses. Certainly made the grass grow. They had 900,000 layers and were the pied piper of chicken manure in the area for years. Then the organic farmers in eastern Washington started contracting for all their manure. Trucked it 200-300 miles. And very little available to local people.

More of a limitation of the spreader than the litter. That is some potent manure and the problem with it if you can't trust the hauler is that they will load it even if it is wet and that is a royal pain.

 

[Ebenezer]

Not sure you were asking but ours is growout

A lot better for the effort.

 

[blackladies]

I would love to get some for ground in Morristown. I've asked and asked and have yet to hear of any available. Just turrible.

Called to the litter guys around and I guess I'm too small to deal with never heard back. Just happen to see a guy turn out a bull next to some big piles of litter as I was driving by. Stopped and talked to him asking where he got the litter and he ended up having his own barns.

 

[gman4691]

No I don't soil test where I put it, it is land that has been abandoned for 20 plus years and I am turning it into a hay meadow. 4 tons is what the entire neighborhood does And have been for 20 years. We use it on hayfields mostly. Makes the grass do back flips

Same here…we've always used chicken litter at about 4 tons per acre…it's getting harder to find a reliable source though…costs around $30-$40 per ton…and does wonders for the hay pastures…soil here is that good old east Texas red dirt beneath a pretty good thickness of topsoil on my place…trying to get some spread this Feb-March to take advantage of the spring rains…I read somewhere that it has 13 of the 16 required nutrients…here is a short paper from Texas A&M

https://overton.tamu.edu/files/2022/03/article804.pdf

 

[wbvs58]

Same here…we've always used chicken litter at about 4 tons per acre…it's getting harder to find a reliable source though…costs around $30-$40 per ton…and does wonders for the hay pastures…soil here is that good old east Texas red dirt beneath a pretty good thickness of topsoil on my place…trying to get some spread this Feb-March to take advantage of the spring rains…I read somewhere that it has 13 of the 16 required nutrients…here is a short paper from Texas A&M

https://overton.tamu.edu/files/2022/03/article804.pdf

Are you gonna get spring rains?

Ken

 

[gman4691]

Are you gonna get spring rains?

Ken

We always do...I guess it's a gamble

 

[wbvs58]

We always do...I guess it's a gamble

Weather has a habit of making an ass of forecasters.

Ken